Here we are yet again with yet another new rumor and leak about Nintendo’s upcoming successor to its Switch console. According to the tipster kopite7kimi, he got his hands on what can be seen as a picture of a die shot of the Nvidia Tegra Orin chip.
In the leak, the alleged leaker also commented that “Nintendo will use a customized one, T239”. on the Orin semiconductor the model number mentioned is T234, and this has created some buzz in the community as it gives us an idea about the power that the Switch Pro could yield.
However, this is not the first time we are hearing the mentioning of the Orin chip and it has popped up many times in the rumors surrounding the alleged Switch Pro device, or whatever the hell it may be called. There are different TDP variants of Orin, with a 15 W SKU offering the best potential option for a Nintendo Switch Pro.
The best features which set the Orin processor apart are that its GPU part has 2,048 CUDA cores and Ampere architecture and the CPU component with 12x ARM Cortex-A78AE cores (Hercules). It also comes with LPDDR5 memory support and a bandwidth of 200 GB/s. the inclusion of this beast will make any fan of Nintendo empty their wallets, as the 2017 Switch’s Tegra X1 processor only offered a 64-bit bus and 25.6 GB/s bandwidth.
Of course, a scaled-down customized version of the Orin SoC won’t offer quite as much GPU processing power as a full-sized SKU, however, if it’s included it will blow away its predecessor outside the park. The full specs and clock rates of the Ampere/Hercules processor have yet to be publicly shared, so, for now, let’s cross our hearts and wait for the best.
